City prepares to paddle Ken Pierman's patootie

Cover your backside, Ken Pierman.

Some people around City Hall think you've been a very bad businessman and they're prepared to give you a whupping.

On Monday night, City Council will be asked to approve prosecution of Pierman for what planning staff say are illegal uses of his property at 1032 Great Northern Road for metal salvage and tire recycling.

Pierman uses the property as a contractor's yard and has been trying to get the City to rezone it for other purposes.

Neither the current nor the proposed zoning authorizes salvage or recycling operations.

Last June, Council decided to defer Pierman's rezoning application until he removed all scrap and salvage metals and met other conditions including paying off $21,000 in outstanding fines.

City staff report that only one fine of $153 remains unpaid, but Pierman still has unpaid taxes for the past four years.

18 years of noncompliance

City Hall points to an 18-year history of defying municipal bylaws and Council-imposed conditions.

"The applicant has since 1985, continued to ignore the conditions imposed by council," says a report prepared last summer.

"Work would be partially done with new applications filed when threatened with prosecution.

"In each application council's approval was conditional subject to conditions which were not met. Therefore, the use conducted as a contractor's yard has technically been illegal since 1989."

Prosecution to finally proceed

On Monday, councillors will be asked to authorize City Solicitor Lorie Bottos to finally nail Pierman in court for the metal salvage and tire recycling operations.

They'll also be asked to inform the businessman that his rezoning will not be finalized until all municipal taxes and outstanding fines are paid in full.